#a torch against the night review

[supitsgdo]

Book review: An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Ratings:

An Ember In The Ashes: 4⭐️

A Torch Against The Night: 4⭐️

A Reaper At The Gates: 4⭐️

A Sky Beyond The Storm: 4,5⭐️

My chest hurts. It took me so long to read this series, but not in a bad way. I enjoyed the story a lot. I laughed, smiled and cried with these books. My chest hurts. I know that the story continues with the new book called Heir. But it’s not the same. My chest hurts. I fell in love with Laia and Elias, their companionship, friendship and then relationship; my heart broke with Helene, for every trial and error, for her love. My chest hurts. Even though I understood Meherya and Keris, I couldn’t connect with them. Although I thought they were great characters. My chest hurts with the end - finality - of this story, and now I need to treat this book-hangover.

Also, it’s really unfair that I just bought these editions and now there are new ones of 10 years anniversary with a beautiful design and illustrations. 🥲

“Curse this world for what it does to the mothers, for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.”

[guide-to-galaxy]

An Ember in the Ashes and A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir (BOOK REVIEW) || Two Books, One Series.

I don’t know what I was thinking rating the first book so high because it certainly wasn’t all good and I didn’t have a good time. Unfortunately I didn’t have a good time with either book as you’ll see as I made a double review. I was sad about not liking it as this is such a popular YA series that I never had access to back in the day. I will, however, read on but I think I’ll change to e-book –…

[callsign-rogueone]

a brief history of Navarre - x.r.

Xaden Riorson x marked!partner!reader (gn) Midterm week at Basgiath has you wanting to pull an all-nighter to study, but Xaden won’t let you. requested as part of my Valentine’s day celly 💕 (gonna be posting these well into March, oops) words: 745 🏷: no book spoilers and no triggers, just X taking care of his partner. established relationship between reader and Xaden. the reader wears one of Xaden’s shirts, but there is no description of how it fits on them (we bigger / taller girls are tired of reading that [character]’s clothes are soo oversized and long on us!) shoutout to the people who put a full timeline of the continent’s history online bc I was too lazy to find it all in my copy lol

“I’m calling it a night,” Xaden announces, closing his textbook. “Gonna go shower.”

You hum in acknowledgement, pen between your teeth as you read the same page for the fifth time tonight, still trying to cram six hundred years of history into your brain. You’ve been sitting on his floor for hours, and the lines of text are starting to blur together, words starting to look misspelled and foreign, losing their meaning with repetition.

You spent too much time reviewing the first fifty decades. You still have nearly another hundred years to cover, from 530 to present. 

It has not escaped your notice that the book reduces the Tyrrish revolution to an afterthought, at the end of the text. The belittling words they’d chosen to describe your parents’ valiant effort had nearly been enough for Xaden to light the entire volume on fire, but he’d settled for ripping that page out of his copy and letting Sgaeyl torch it.

You’d left it in yours as a reminder that these people are not on your side, nor will they ever be. 

The running water stops, Xaden stepping back into the room a moment later. “You’re still studying?” He asks, rubbing at his hair with a towel. “You must be really into that book if you aren’t checking me out right now. I’m literally dripping.” 

He’s a little offended that you don’t even look up as you answer. 

“This is important, Xay. It’s a third of our final grade.”

He dries his hands on his pants, taking the book from your hands easily -- your grip on it has loosened with your exhaustion.

You protest, but he shushes you. “Why did Poromiel not unite with Navarre after the great war?”

It takes you a moment to respond, pushing through the sleepy fog to find the answer. “Religious differences”, you reply tiredly. “And their king did not want to share his throne with Navarre’s.”

“Good. When was the second Cygni Incursion?”

“328.”

“And the second Krovlan uprising?”

“434.”

He shuts the book, gathering your notes into a neat stack. “You know this stuff, darling. You’re going to pass this exam with flying colors and set the curve for the whole class, but only if you get some sleep.”

Materials now confiscated, you have nowhere to look except up at him, and your resolve immediately starts to crumble.

He’s ready for bed, dressed only in a pair of black sweatpants that drape across his hips and cover the muscle of his legs, but every other inch of skin is exposed; the relic swirling up his muscled arm, the definition of his chest and stomach, the broad expanse of his shoulders…

You’re too tired to jump his bones right now, but it would be nice to stop, to cuddle up with him, to fall asleep in his arms. Your schedules are packed with classes, studying, training, his wingleader duties, and your responsibility for the younger marked ones. It’s been nearly a week since you’ve been able to hold him for more than five minutes. His skin is always so warm against yours, and his mattress is certainly more comfortable than the hardwood floor… 

You hesitate, still eyeing the book in his hands. “I don’t know…”

“Yes, you do. C’mere.”

You sigh, letting him pull you up from the floor. Your muscles sing in relief as you stand, your back aching from being hunched over for hours. You relax into him, resting your eyes for a minute.

“Go brush your teeth,” he encourages.

You don’t want to move from his arms, but three years of dating the boy has taught you that he won’t yield on matters of your health. You sigh, heading to the bathroom.

When you get back, he’s packing everything into your bag for tomorrow — or today, rather. You’d started studying after dinner, and now it’s well after midnight. 

He helps you out of the day-old clothes and into one of his shirts and a clean pair of underwear -- you keep a few days of necessities here for moments like these. 

You curl into his side, pulling the blankets overtop of you, and the swirling thoughts are replaced with the easy contentment that comes with being held by your partner.

“You’re going to do great,” he whispers, smoothing a hand over your back. “Just get some rest, okay?”

You don’t respond, already lulled to sleep by the steadiness of his heartbeat and the warmth of his arms around you.

[deramin2]

The Eugene Weekly wrote about the events leading to the embezzlement from them of over $100k and unpaid bills of over $200k and the near death of the paper before the community saved it.

Absolutely wild story that sounds like the plot to an A24 film.

In an age of both corporate and independent news rooms shuttering even without large scale theft, it's both a devastating turn of events, and a triumph to see them claw their way back from oblivion because the community they served refused to let them die.

There are only two other newspapers in Eugene:

The Daily Emerald: Student paper from their school of journalism. Excellent quality and have broken important local stories, but also rookies still learning the trade and no long term work.

The Register Guard: Formerly a local paper now owned by Gannett. Absolute dogshit. Next to no local news anymore. What newsroom remains is so stifled in what they can write that you're better off following them all on Twitter for the real news. Killed letters to the editor, endorsements, and even most local election coverage for being too political. Incredibly abusive to their employees at all levels. Hemorrhaging subscriptions due to quality.

And then there's the Eugene Weekly who's very open about their leftist slant and also holds truth to power. Tireless voice of the people from investigative journalism, to a local events calendar and reviews, to the reader-driven Best of Eugene contest rating everything from restaurants to drag queens to activists.

Folks here looked into the void that would be left without them and could not let that future pass. So poor to rich, individuals to business (some trying to crowdfund their own struggles to survive at the same time), all came together to say we value this enough to pitch in. We need this part of our social fabric to stay together. We don't want to be left in the dark. And it worked. Beyond all likelihood or hope. One torch in the dark against ignorance and misinformation relit.

I hope The Bookkeeper gets help. This is such a tragic way to bring ruin to your life. Addiction is so hard to break but there are people in the area doing their best to treat people, and I hope that ultimately this is a turning point in her life. Clearly things got out of hand.

[ausetkmt]

A school district in Alabama has been getting hammered by critics online after high school students allegedly exchanged racially violent and threatening messages—including remarks about lynching Black people—on social media.

On Tuesday, SnapChat messages circulated between students within the Oneonta City Schools district, sparking an investigation after three students reported the horrific exchange of messages to administrators.

“This afternoon, three students reported a Snapchat message from the previous evening occurring off campus between several other students that were offensive and divisive,” Oneonta City Schools posted on its Facebook page Wednesday. “I’m proud of the students for reporting this to their administrators as it speaks highly of them and their rapport with their administrators.

“The administrators immediately researched the Snapchat messages to gather facts and a decision was made to take immediate disciplinary action against those involved,” the post continued, limiting who could respond in the comments. “Our schools will not tolerate this type of behavior.”

The post garnered hundreds of reactions and dozens of shares, and community members flocked to social media to share their disgust with how the school district allegedly handled the students involved.

“I really love how they disabled the comments,” Oneonta resident Natalie Maude wrote. “I heard all they got was in school suspension and a slap on the wrist. Go figure. Go redskins.”

Some of the vile messages shared by students on Snapchat.

Screenshots of the vile SnapChat messages were shared on Facebook Wednesday by Oneonta High School alumnus Landon Bothwell, who said he obtained the images from his brother and current Oneonta student, Da’Marion “Fluff” Bothwell. Landon said Da’Marion got the messages from one of the other students included in the SnapChat group, and Landon decided to post them on Facebook to “let everyone know what that school is really about.”

“This type of activity isn’t anything new [at Oneonta],” Landon told The Daily Beast Thursday, explaining that it appeared as if the people in the group were planning to do something on the night of homecoming.

According to Oneonta’s football schedule, the homecoming game is planned for Sept. 22 against Fultondale High School.

In the screenshots, at least six people engaged in the SnapChat conversation.

“Let’s bring candles and nooses to school while wearing it,” one person says. “Hang the blacks.”

“With torches,” another person chimes in.

Another person suggests bringing “pitchforks,” “cotton plants,” and “signs that say negro bathrooms this way.”

Residents are angry that the Oneonta City Schools district has not done enough to punish the students responsible.

The Daily Beast reviewed unedited images of the screenshots, but chose to remove the students’ names. However, each of their names corresponded with players on Oneonta High School’s baseball team.

The Facebook page for Oneonta Baseball did not seem to address the controversy, though it previously reported other urgent issues like softball renovations in July and new batting cages in June.

No one from the superintendent’s office of Oneonta City Schools, the school board, the Oneonta High School administration, the Oneonta High School baseball team, or the parents of the students who allegedly exchanged the racist SnapChat messages immediately responded to The Daily Beast’s requests for comment Thursday.

[simoneandherbooks]

A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir // Book Review

This was actually a reread for me, but when I was going through my notes, I realized I never wrote a review for this book. Since this is one of my favorite series, I thought it made sense to finally share what I think. More about A Torch Against the Night Now, in A TORCH AGAINST THE NIGHT, Elias and Laia are running for their lives.After the events of the Fourth Trial, Martial soldiers hunt the…

[waitingforwinterwinds]

A Clash of Kings - 60 SANSA VI (pages 763-769)

Sansa and Cersei dine with the highborn women and wait for news of the battle.

-

The torches shimmered brightly against the hammered metal of the wall sconces, filling the Queen's Ballroom with silvery light. Yet there was still darkness in that hall.

Oh that's some good metaphor. The room is filled with an illusion of safety and security, but they aren't safe, and the room isn't actually that secure and that possibility is hanging over them as much as the death of the men on the walls.

"I would sooner face any number of swords than sit helplessly like this, pretending to enjoy the company of this flock of frightened hens." "You asked them here, Your Grace." "Certain things are expected of a queen. They will be expected of you should you ever wed Joffrey. Best learn." ... "- So it behooves me to give their women my protection.If my wretched imp of a brother should somehow prevail, they will return to their husbands and fathers full of tales about how brave I was, how my courage inspired them and lifted their spirits, how I never doubted our victory even for a moment." ... Sansa was horrified. "These are women, unarmed , and gently born." "Their birth protects them," Cersei admitted, "though not as much as you'd think. -" ... "Were it anyone else outside the gates, I might hope to beguile him. But this is Stannis Baratheon. I'd have a better chance of seducing his horse." She noticed the look on Sansa's face, and laughed. "Have I shocked you, my lady?" She leaned close. "You little fool. Tears are not a woman's only weapon. You've got another one between your legs, and you'd best learn to use it. You'll find men use their swords freely enough, Both kinds of swords."

Sorry, I've been taken out of The Horrors but the realisation that Sansa is Cersei's only friend. Like it's very easy to accept at face value that this is just Cersei flexing her limited power to feel in control by lashing out at Sansa, but damn if this doesn't read like Cersei genuinely thinks of Sansa as her protege, the closest thing she has to a confidant.

Ii mean yes, Cersei has other people she can talk to, but none who she can be honest with without the fear that they'll be able to use that against her. In a weird and twisted way, for Cersei at this moment: Sansa is her only friend.

This is very emotionally conflicting for me because on one hand ^ that ^ and on the other: The Horrors and the Lurking Doom Waiting the Eventuality of Failure.

"Another lesson you should learn, if you hope to sit beside my son. Be gentle on a night like this, and you'll have popping up all about you like mushrooms after a hard rain. The only way to keep your people loyal is to make certain they fear you more than they do the enemy." "I will remember, Your Grace," said Sansa, though she had always heard that love was a surer route to the people's loyalty than fear. If i am ever a queen, I'll make them love me.

Oh! It's the line!

"Would that I could take a sword to their necks myself." Her voice was starting to slur. "When we were little, Jaime and i were so much alike that even our lord father could not tell us apart. Sometimes as a lark we would dress in each other's clothes and spend a whole day each as the other. Yet even so, when Jaime was given his first sword, there was none for me. -"

Well hello Arya|Cersei connections.

No but, I've mentioned before, Cersei represents the "sold child bride" narrative Dany and Sansa both have going on, or at least a potential outcome for their narrative, but Cersei also has "Arya's path/Lady warrior: Denied" going on in the back story.

...I've just realised this has basically become a Cersei chapter review, whoops. XD

"- I know all about your little treason in the godswood." "The godswood?" Don't look at Ser Dontos, don't, don't, Sansa told herself. She doesn't know, no one knows, Dontos promised me, my Florian would never fail me. "I've done no treasons. I only visit the godswood to pray." "For Stannis. Or your brother, it's all the same. Why else seek out your father's gods? You're praying for our defeat. What would you call that, if not treason?"

Well handled! Never confess to a crime, especially if it hasn't been directly stated which crime, and there is no evidence, you will only end up condemning yourself. Sansa did really well not to look at her partner in crime, cause that kind of thing is a reflexive action, very hard to avoid. People will often look to accomplices or hiding spots or move to hide those things without thinking, only to end up exposing them because people notice.

I've actually exploited this habit myself to trick my dad once, he was looking for the candy stash years ago, so I "subtly" moved in front of the broom closet, and he ended up spending several extra minutes looking in there for the stash that had never been there in the first place because he'd become convinced I'd been trying to hide it. >:3c

"He's here for us, he says," the queen said. "Stannis may take the city and he may take the throne, but I will not suffer him to judge me. I do not mean for him to have us alive." "Us?" "You heard me. So perhaps you had best pray again, Sansa, and for a different outcome. The Starks will have no joy from the fall of House Lannister, I promise you." She reached out and touched Sansa's hair, brushing it lightly away from her neck.

"Cersei brushes Sansa's hair away from her neck." Yeah, no, we get it Cersei, matching haircuts with a little too much off the top.

Cersei: I'm not letting them take us alive! Sansa: wait what? Cersei: we are gonna Thelma & Louise right of this edge! Sansa: Can I unsubscribe to this plan? Cersei: Beheadings

I was very distracted for most of this chapter by the "Cersei's only friend" realisation, but it's very much Sansa doing an amazing job of keeping it together under increasing pressure while Cersei slowly lowkey loses her shit in the face of their potentially unfortunate fate.

[jooniens]

January 2023 TBR

I truly am so excited to be back doing this. I had to remind myself on hiatus that taking a break is what I needed but I truly did miss this. 

I am quite proud of the reading that I did in 2022 and I am going to push myself to read even more this year. As I have mentioned before one of my goals this year is to finish all of the series that I have started, both in 2022 and overall. Thus, many of my TBR lists this year will be full of sequels and continuations of series. I will do my best to not include spoilers but sometimes in book reviews it is just part of business. 

Anyways, now that I’ve established “ground rules”, let’s get into what I want to read in the month of January!

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

I know what I said above, I want to finish the series that I have already started and this is the first of a new series but hear me out, I have been wanting to read this for awhile and after I was finally able to FIND this book (which is more of a challenge than you would expect for a book that is nearly a decade old) I want to start it as soon as possible. You all have seen my opinion on the Mortal Instrument series but I heard that the Infernal Devices is far superior and I am just holding out for it. 

Lightbringer by Claire Legrand

I have had this in at least one of my previous TBR lists and yes, I still haven't read it (hence why one of my goals is to finish series). I really loved the first two books in this series I just don’t want it to end. This is quite a large book so If I do decide to read this I will probably try to read some shorter or stand alone novels to help my brain not shut down. 

Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson 

Now for a standalone. I actually just bought this and honestly, I wouldn’t have picked this up if Hannah (From Aclockworkreader) didn’t make a reading vlog about this novel and loved it. It seems like something I would like I am just not sure why I always gravitate towards series instead of stand-alone novels. I have this book right in front of me and I actually plan on starting it after drafting this post (remember to keep up with me on Goodreads/Instagram @jooniens !) 

A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir

I started An Ember in the Ashes in November of 2022 and it has been true love. A Torch against the Night was my last read for 2022 and it was a great way to end a year of reading. This entire series has swept me off of my feet and I am so excited to keep reading, I just love these characters and this world so much. I accidentally bought this thinking that it was the second book so I had to go back to Barnes and Noble later (what a shame). 

There isn’t a lot on this list because half of my Goodreads TBR has gone missing(?) I know I trimmed it down but I don’t think I had gotten rid of so much. Hopefully, I will be able to knock some of these titles off and start 2023 with some great reads.  

Also, note that I will be bringing back the Mid-Month Reading updates however they will be brief posts and not as long as they were previously. 

Have a very happy and safe new year! 

Much Love, 

June <3

[arpov-blog-blog]

Jack Smith Torches Judge Cannon in Late-Night Filing, Could Seek Appeal

Smith is threatening a writ of mandamus over Cannon's latest order.

Brett Meiselas Meidas Touch Network

Special Counsel Jack Smith issued a scorching response to a request made by Judge Aileen Cannon, who demanded that Government and Donald Trump submit a set of hypothetical jury instructions to two completely erroneous premises that lacked a fundamental understanding of the issues at center of the stolen documents case. Smith's response, in no uncertain terms, challenges the legal premises underlying the request, asserting that they are fundamentally flawed and could distort the trial.

The crux of the issue lies in the interpretation of the Presidential Records Act (PRA) and its relevance to the charges faced by Donald Trump. The Government argues that the distinction between "personal" and "Presidential" records under the PRA should not determine whether the former President's possession of highly classified documents is authorized under the Espionage Act. Smith explains that the PRA should play no role in the jury instructions regarding the elements of the Espionage Act.

Importantly, Smith emphasizes the urgency of the Court's decision on this matter. He asserts that if the Court wrongly concludes that the legal premise represents a correct formulation of the law, it must inform the parties well in advance of the trial. This is crucial to allow the Government the opportunity to consider appellate review before jeopardy attaches, laying the groundwork to seek mandamus against Judge Cannon, which could ultimately end in Cannon getting booted from the case.

Smith warns that presenting to the jury a factual determination based on incorrect legal premises could lead to a "high probability of failure of a prosecution." Therefore, the Government insists on the importance of seeking prompt appellate review if necessary.

Smith explains that Trump's invocation of the PRA is not grounded in any decisions he made during his presidency. Instead, it is portrayed as a post hoc justification concocted after leaving the White House. Smith contends that there is no basis in law or fact for this legal presumption and urges the Court to reject Trump's efforts to inject the PRA into the case.

Smith provides a detailed account of Trump's actions following his departure from office, demonstrating a consistent acknowledgment that the documents were presidential records. Even as late as May 2022, Trump's attorney accepted a grand jury subpoena related to the classified documents without contesting their presidential status.

Furthermore, Smith refutes the notion that Trump's alleged designation of the documents as personal, if it ever occurred, would shield him from prosecution under Section 793(e). He argues that authorization to possess classified information is governed by Executive Order 13526, not the PRA, and that Trump's purported designation holds no legal weight in the context of unauthorized possession.

Smith asserts that the proposed jury instructions would lead to confusion and potential miscarriages of justice. By directing the jury to determine the classification of documents under the PRA, the instructions conflate a factual determination with a legal one, thereby muddying the waters of the case.

In response to Judge Cannon's request, Smith provides alternative jury instructions that adhere to the correct legal framework. These instructions clarify that unauthorized possession of classified information is determined by whether an individual holds a security clearance, has a need-to-know basis, and complies with safeguarding regulations outlined in Executive Order 13526. In both hypothetical scenarios, the Special Counsel makes clear that the instructions, as defined by Judge Cannon, would be incorrect. In his conclusion, Smith once again emphasizes that he will be forced to take action should Judge Cannon not reject Trump's erroneous legal premise, which should have never been considered in the first place.

Smith concludes: "If, however, the Court does not reject that erroneous legal premise, it should make that decision clear now, long before jeopardy attaches, to allow the Government the opportunity to seek appellate review. "

[percontaion-points]

Firstlife chapter 12

Today’s review might be difficult for some; reader discretion is advised

Click to see the rest of the snark & image descriptions

Chapter 12

“Your Firstlife sets the stage for your Second.” —Troika

Full offence, but Archer literally told Clay that you will be forgiven for anything in Troika. So you should totally sign with them, go party, murder some people, etc etc… And then die. 

This book has yet to tell us exactly what the point of living a long firstlife is. Life sounds goddamned miserable. Like you’re the civilians caught up in another country’s war. 

And then it sounds like you’re going to be nothing but cannon fodder once you die. 

Maybe Ten should roll the dice and hope that there’s something better after she dies in secondlife. 

When I ask to speak with the owner, she gives me a tsk-tsk.

 “You wanting a piece of him? Don’t try to deny it. Girls just can’t seem to keep their hands off his goods and services.”

Why is this author so goddamned obsessed with sex? I’m not sure that we’ve had a single chapter where a character didn’t say something along these lines, even in passing. 

“I saw his body. And I used his severed hand to open the gate and free you.”

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but you can 100% survive without a hand. 

“How old are you? Really?”

 “I’m seventeen.” His chest puffs up with pride. “A mature seventeen.”

Why the hell is nobody in this book over 20? And the older ones are the bad guys. 

I open the door to find the boy—probably three or four—clutching a stuffed teddy bear to his chest.

[...]

“You can’t tell I’m a Shell?”

[...]

“Weren’t you listening, blondie? Or is the air in your head clogging your ears? I’m not on duty, so I’m not signing no one. All I expect from you is a hand job.”

Maybe the author thought that she was being funny and edgy with the constant sex “jokes”. But the fact that she had the angel in the body of a 3 or 4 year old is honestly so icky. 

I hope that the author got put on a watchlist for this scene. 

Get to the airport, get to the States. 

If you could run anywhere, why the fuck are you going to go to USA? 

Nah man, send me to the goddamned south of France. It’s the last place anybody would think to look for me. 

We HART You! Humans Against Realm Turmoil! 

Don’t Believe the Lies! Realms Are Simply a Way to Control You!

I want to hear more from these HART people. They’re the only ones with seemingly any ounce of logic and free thinking. 

“Hawaii,” I say, making a split-second decision. I’ll be far from LA—and my parents—but close to water. “ 

I t ’ s s e t t l e d t h e n , ” t h e p i l o t s a y s. “ G o a h e a d a n d b o a r d a n d w e ’ l l t a k e o ff.” [I don’t know why the hell it’s like that, and I am NOT fixing it]

Chapter 12 summary: Sloan and Ten go to the B&B Archer told them about, where they hand over the “coin”, and get put into a room. That night, Ten has a dream about her mentally ill auntie. About how she’d always talk about Ten in the past tense, and usually stuff like “I’m sorry you died.” When Ten was 13, her father completely cut his sister out from their lives, and refused to talk about her anymore. When she wakes up, she finds that Killian visited in the middle of the night. He’d left her two bracelets that have garroting wire in them. 

The girls eat breakfast and put on new clothes that were given to them. As they’re discussing what their next move should be, a little boy shows up at their room. It’s actually the hotel owner, a rogue Troikan angel who was put on probation after selling angelic drugs to humans. He says that he owed Archer a favour, and he’s not doing it for either of them. 

As they’re being driven to the airport, they discuss their future plans. Sloan’s backstory is that her granny wanted to force her not only into signing with Myriad, but also in marrying a man twice her age. Like Ten, she wants to make it to 18 so that she can be freed of her guardian forcing her to be tortured until she gives in. Then, she plans to torch her family’s estate. There are also signs along the highway advertising both Troika, Myriad, but also the anti-realm group, HART. 

The airport is super sketchy, but they realise they have no choice. Killian is there, and Ten wastes no time in calling him out on his shit. That he’s the reason why Clay died. Killian is like “Who cares? So another human died.” Although it’s hard to say if he doesn’t give a shit about humans in general, or specifically those who’ve signed with Troika. 

Ten goes over to the pilot, who she thinks is unsigned. He asks her where they’re going, and she says Hawaii. 

[libidomechanica]

“Because thou are sweet contempt the night”

A kimo sequence

               1

I ate you urg’d that he did frown, O! The merchants of his fair guests were on her dying. She strong.

               2

If I leave of the way home. Because thou are sweet contempt the night. Imagine things that we mean.

               3

Which filled my middle jimp wi’ a haw bayberry kame; the flood-gates breath with a strand.-House no more.

               4

’ He cries, these ladies cough loudly Thenot, my wrath did end. It, so we fall in all here my hands.

               5

There was not she that made one—turn downs in clear expansion. Unto whom remain, lust’s winter’s tale?

               6

Of asphodel, for you in words, per day. Answer, nor they crickets of despair, I should vanished.

               7

In vain—and every presence. Who, like a gull passing by but shall still the many times begun.

               8

To feed his mariners, and so forgets I will not match his pricked eares? Of his desire.

               9

And read a lawny loom and I make, for perchance, excepting some seed is gone. And happy breast.

               10

Reviewed the bels, ye yon bonny bowers. Thus he that has it, at least know me; no fishes take.

               11

Leave of the year’s first Mrs. Thou twin’d me of some sweetest has a kiss I gave me, and pursuit.

               12

But mine own with her daughters, to gathers, like a river or a war? Two lines of wake behind.

               13

A hill and lamb. Thou canst not with knight is part museum of the design, i, who sail sae royallie.

               14

With the view, by all passion doth borrow; her eyes. With the fruitful Grape than sadden after sea.

               15

Ten kisses such a n active counted high. Which gives me you the globe, we have an equal share.

               16

His pleasure. ’ Why, what our neighbour there appear more be grieved appear, why heart, and scarlot berries.

               17

That suckling flames the best that Time decays? Dreaming when I fall by name. Ne though the diamond fine.

               18

Tis beauty in Loves Wars to yeild. The Almighty will receives her children’s cries, Forsooth, let go!

               19

With soul just nerved to allot each too much glory: and when I passed a man with facts. The rest.

               20

Through a commentator’s fantasy, and cauld, Gregory. On my adventure brave and his fume.

               21

Beauty hold my right had veild the Winter’s dead, the honeybees to die. You do it for us.

               22

That ruin wild and chastities sweet bowre. More than her: the eye and he embraced the seasons run?

               23

Lord Gregory, the dwarfs and blow, and there. He there? Are over my head: her arms in love with me.

               24

A cliff swinging against a glance at Maud in all these sneers again; whose the best interpreters.

               25

Me thus—Poor Man! For your Suppliants plaint, caused others such a beauteous day, and, on thee, Cynara!

               26

Dead religion meets my shrink. If in my breast, and that for the more sweet seals in my wax-red lips.

               27

Of fire. To do a goddess when their scratch’d by the brown earthquake: they would twine about a welcome.

               28

Me, and their husband. Often and the sun and sole your shield, whereat she will not knowing weather.

               29

With the religion of the pit? It would have spoken the umbrage of iron the hectic stings!

               30

A little him a goodly dost abhor me? Blythe in that concerns you in the fashion all things.

               31

—So you reported before my Eyes take. A trentall sung. Of men, and urchins flay each other.

               32

And being gone, not a breath breathing, the grocery man calling plied and silly mild, make the fray.

               33

Torches are marries that won’t look back again. Prayer, or two had damp’d his national: if Pindar?

               34

Horrible, hatefully the door. But when most I wink, then despond: the staring rust the soul.

               35

And eke ye light wrestling through the Eyes be blind. Watercress so finely spring I shall we?

               36

But the cup before me? Think of me untrodden on by many, for it is a hierarchy!

               37

Lighting conflict of heauens, the birds say? Some hands and with reefs which made head, gained grounde to qualify.

               38

Whose present her hearts doo chace from heaven. Today i’m filled with his melting snows, and pay them not.

               39

Which through rusty gowns, but when my soul believe? ’Tis a common one, in hand with the maiden Aunt.

               40

Among them. For he is no gentle wished days had passe. The purblind hare, mark the poet here?

               41

Eyes, ears took in the heroic if you’d have gone to secure in your hand lie fallen to dust.

               42

Stamp and scorns and thou speak out. Thou canst not gladly to be grateful divorced old bar above you.

               43

That the sun beats light the themes in every partial. Who caper here and grave low down by his sight?

               44

Sing ye sweet-smelling. At tend vpon her husband sense and waive the Rose-leaf of her Eyes with tremble?

               45

For me than white, her has to pay. Lifted o’er of deep enough to sorrow to shew his glory.

               46

So much good companie. The text is look’d about the while its cool underwater for a magnet.

               47

The one doth hearts as light blown by Desires, and dare not drawn from time the Blest. We had of love.

               48

Of sorrow may not beg the linger? Do you ask what that godless climes and wave thy skill, and give!

               49

The low rational: if Pindar? Glow like weeds against the trees of silver- set; about our master!

               50

’Er pleasance too bold, but yet betoken’d wrack to come, comfort. Meantime we two will never bleach.

               51

She looks reviveth; a smile of betters. Since brass, or a greater than I am; the disgrace.

               52

A wind sings, and your eccho ring. The velvet cushions for a throates, the which the woods them all!

               53

Sometimes in one minute, but it is with thee wrong.—And they not be easily harm’d; being proud.

[jellybeanbeing]

An Ember in the Ashes, A Torch Against the Night, and A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir Book Review

I’m going to skip out on telling the synopsis because it would only make this post extra lengthy so if you haven’t read this series yet, go check it out! 

Past Reviews:

https://jellybeanbeing.tumblr.com/post/174230855131/an-ember-in-the-ashes-by-sabaa-tahir

https://jellybeanbeing.tumblr.com/post/174705848336/a-torch-against-the-night-by-sabaa-tahir

https://jellybeanbeing.tumblr.com/post/175215237101/a-reaper-at-the-gates-by-sabaa-tahir

https://jellybeanbeing.tumblr.com/post/186834634051/a-reaper-at-the-gates-by-sabaa-tahir-updated

REVIEW W/ SPOILERS FROM EMBER, TORCH, & REAPER! 

I am fully aware that I have already done four reviews centering around these books (Ember, Torch, Reaper, Reaper Updated) but I read them again and I HAVE NEW THOUGHTS. I’m just gonna dive right into my thoughts because it’s gonna be really long. I will separate my thoughts into different sections--main characters, side characters, romantic relationships, plot, analytical things--just to try and keep this review as organized as possible. 

We shall begin with our main girl, Laia. Laia is a character who starts off as someone who is scared and doesn’t know what to do but she wants to do something. I think often we get stories of main characters already having a strong mentality and a certain unwavering strength inside them that helps guide them through their journey. Laia doesn’t have that in the beginning of this series. She’s constantly fearing that she’s going to fail and die. The only thing that is helping her get through Blackcliff, initially, are the voices of her family. And that’s why I think Laia is just such a great and relatable main character. She goes into becoming a spy to save her brother. She wasn’t going into it, thinking, “I’m going to save the Scholars.” That thought and ambition comes after she understands that she could do more and that saving Darin could lead to her saving the Scholars. She makes mistakes which I love, because people do make mistakes. Not everything she does or says is always right. I know I complained about this in my past reviews, but after this reread, I’m appreciating Laia and her journey more. She’s constantly being selfless, saving those she cares about rather than saving herself. In the second book, she’s finally starting to not doubt herself so much, and that’s because Elias gives her the strength and belief that she is strong. At the end of book one, we can see that Laia is breaking that surface of finding her own inner strength, but sometimes, our words aren’t enough to keep us going. Sometimes we need someone else’s words to keep burning. I also think that Laia is a character who thrives from the support of the people she cares about. When Keenan starts to belittle Laia and telling her she’s at fault for all the deaths, it makes her feel weak and stupid, and even Laia kind of sees it. After he leaves, Laia begins to recapture the strength she had and build on it. In the third book, we start seeing the leader in her. She’s becoming ruthless and strong without the words of her friends and family. She’s still tries to model herself after her mother, which is understandable because that’s who Laia looks up to, but I love that others around her tell her that, she’s not The Lioness, that she’s her own person and that she has a different strength. I think she’ll grow into that in book four.

Let’s talk about Elias now. I HAVE A NEW FOUND WHOLE APPRECIATION FOR HIS CHARACTER. If you read my past reviews about these books, you would know that I wasn’t fond of Elias as much as I was with Laia and Helene. I didn’t understand his motivations, his intentions, and why he was the way he was, but I understand his character more now. I think to really grasp onto who he is, you have to read the books right after each other because his emotions are linked so tightly together and the only way to get the true essence of them is to read the books all together. Elias is probably one of my favorite characters, if not, my favorite character of all time now. He’s someone who hates what he does and who he is at the beginning of the series, and we are slowly seeing Elias summon the courage to do something about it. All he wants to do is to able to love and care freely, and to feel true happiness for himself. At the end of book one, Elias finally gathers the courage to stop being the person he was, and start being the person he wants to be. His past continues to haunt him and he so badly just wants to right it, and not feel guilty. And I also think this makes Elias such a great and relatable character. We’ve often done things in our life that we regret or feel so much guilt for, and we try to find ways to relieve ourselves of it. We want to right our wrongs, and so badly want to become the person we strive to be. Sometimes, that’s a scary thing to do as well. Throughout these books, Elias is always put in a position where must become the person he doesn’t want to become, and if he doesn’t submit to being that person, it causes him and the people he loves to suffer the consequences. In book two, he’s constantly telling Laia that she gets to make her own choices and giving her strength. Elias doesn’t get to make his own choices, or if he does, they cause him great pain. I think this is a really heartbreaking yet selfless thing because if he can’t get to become the person he wants to be, he’ll help others become the people they want to be. In book three, Elias has to finally become the person he didn’t want to become which is someone who is cold and uncaring, but he does it because if he doesn’t then the people he loves will be in danger. We can a lot this push and pull throughout book three, and it’s such an emotional journey that Elias goes through. I have no idea where his character is going to go in book four.

Now for Helene. She’s still one of my favorite characters, but I understand her character dynamic more. Helene, in the beginning of this series, is already kind of a capable character who is strong physically and mentally but she has a lot vulnerability to her that adds to her strength. I’ve written an essay about Helene’s character two years back (not on this blog, but can post if someone wants to read it) so I’m going to take points from that. Helene is also a relatable and great character (you know what? A lot of the characters I talk about have a relatable factor to them). She is someone who has a deep love for the things she cares about. She’ll do anything in her power to protect them which even means allowing them to hurt if in the end they are still safe. We often have to choose between difficult things and sometimes they end up hurting others or ourselves in the process even when we didn’t mean to. Her love is a great strength but it’s also something that causes her great pain and consequences. Because she is someone bound to duty and the empire, and always wanting to do the right thing, her love often gets in the way of the task at hand. In the book one, her love for Elias grows into a romantic love and we can see that it causes her and Elias pain because they are now in this awkward stage with each other and they’re too afraid to confront them until Elias eventually does but even then it hurts them. At the end of book one, Helene lets Elias go and that’s a moment where her love overrules her sense of duty, and in book two, we know that this leads to consequences. Helene, in book two, now has to hunt Elias, knowing that it will tear her apart but she does it anyway because she was ordered to and her family’s lives are at stake. She captures Elias but let’s him go because she loves him platonically now. It causes for her mission to prolong and now her family’s lives are at stake but in the end, Helene doesn’t capture Elias because she senses that there is a threat to the empire, therefore risking her family’s lives and results in all but one of them to die. Her love and duty often pull her back and forth with the choices she makes. In book three, she becomes more bound with her love for the empire, but her love for her people becomes the thing that overrules. In book one, it was Elias. In book two, it was her family. Now in book three, it’s her people--the Martials. In the end, she sacrifices herself for her people and the arc from where her love began has changed and she gives into her heart. In book one and two, at the end, she choose to honor the empire and what it stands for. At the end of book three, she chooses to honor the love she has for her people. But it’s still something she struggles with and it’s evident in the scene at the end with her and Avitas. I think book 4 that will still be a present theme for her character but it become something where her love and duty don’t have to have a raging war inside of her.

There’s a blog post that I read a few weeks back and I think they do a great character analysis of Laia and Helene. It’s definitely worth the read and delves even more into their characters analytically than I do here, and is way more articulate and just so great. 

Here’s the link: https://sezzums.tumblr.com/post/150038101601/lets-talk-about-laia-and-helene

Onto side characters, and I’m only really going to be talking about the more important ones because we really do have a lot of side characters.

Let’s first talk about The Nightbringer/Keenan. Oh how I hated him during this third reread. I mostly hate Keenan, and not so much The Nightbringer. Keenan is such a manipulative and cruel character. From the beginning up to the point where he is revealed, he was constantly belittling Laia and making her feel like she was nothing. I get that it was his way of getting the armlet, but what a piece of trash. How Laia fell for him is a fucking mystery because fuck Keenan. But The Nightbringer, I enjoy this character more. I think it’s because we got more depth and background to who he was/is. I love that his motivations for doing what he is doing has an actual and understandable reason behind all of his actions. It really builds upon the complexity that this world already has with its blurriness of who’s right and who’s wrong. While reading the books this time around, I felt the only times I could really sympathize and feel some emotion other than hatred towards Keenan was when he mentioned his family and his loss. It was because I knew what had happened and I thought it built so much on The Nightbringer’s character rather than leaving him to be this evil jinn. We got to see and understand some of the human emotions he felt/related to. I honestly don’t even have a clue as to what his bigger plan is, but I can just feel like it’s gonna fuck everything up and I’m not ready for it.

Now onto Keris Veturia/The Commandant. I hate how much I enjoy her character so much because she is such an evil fucking bitch, but she is written so so well. The complexity that her character gives and the many layers to her are so fantastic to unveil and to discover. Her motivations and intentions are still in the dark but I feel like it all stems from her mother and her death, then after the death of Arius, it was acted upon. There’s still so much more to her character and why she is a total bitch, and I just want to know. One thing that I love is the meaning behind Keris’s tattoo. It is so meaningful and makes you really question who she is and why she does the things that she does. I would really like to see Keris interacting more with Laia and Elias in the next book because I think it would be so interesting, especially because Laia and Elias are in such different stages in their lives than they were when under the rule of her. I feel like I don’t have much to say because her character is still so in the dark, but let me tell you, the moment she dies will be the day I scream with joy. I’m also hoping that it’s Helene who does the deed because I think it would be so much more impactful due to so much of the Commandant’s taunting towards Helene.

Marcus Farrar is the complete fucking asshole and I hate his guts so so much, but I will acknowledge the fact that his character was written pretty well. He isn’t the true antagonist of this series, but a lot of what he does has/had impact on all three central characters. Throughout these books, he constantly belittles and attacks and harasses Helene, he abuses Livia, he attacks Laia, he taunts and bullies Elias, and a lot of other fucked up shit. His character could’ve been left at that, but Sabaa Tahir molds his character into more of a three dimensional character. After the death of Zak, we start seeing a more human side of him. He openly expresses the troubled feeling he has with Elias after the Trial of Strength, and this is the moment where we feel pity for Marcus. We start to uncover the harder outer shell of his character and understand that he feels those intense and heart wrenching emotions. There’s a line in book 3 where it describes perfectly what I’m trying to say: “I take their darkness--that which Blackcliff found within them and nurtured... When I look back at the twins, they are boys once more, untainted by the world.” (449) It describes the twins so well and the potential they had to not be the vicious people they were. Throughout book 2 and 3, we slowly start seeing Marcus’s mental health deteriorate. The death of Zak still haunts him, and like a lot of the other characters, he wasn’t allowed to mourn for him, someone who has been at his side since birth. The scene in Reaper where he discovers Helene’s healing powers and he tries to get her to heal him was such an emotional scene. We go into Marcus’s head and see that a lot of his rage and anger comes from the loneliness that he now feels because of Zak’s absence and haunting. It still doesn’t excuse his character for all the shitty things he’s done, but with this we get a better understanding of his character. It makes his death at the end much grander and impactful, and not a waste.

Avitas Harper, my favorite side character ever. Fuck, I love him so much. I don’t know why, but I’ll try to explain to the best of my abilities. It’s definitely more difficult for me to form thoughts on how I have grown to love him because of how he was first introduced to readers. Right at the beginning, he’s torturing Helene to get information out of her, duties given to him by the Empire/Marcus/The Commandant. We all know that within this world it is “duty first, unto death.” I feel like, yes, first impressions are everything and while Avitas’s first impression is definitely not the best, his actions contrast from what we were first given of his character. With those pockets of moments, we were able to get a feel of his character because we really don’t get a lot of information about him for the majority of Torch up until the end. In the end, we begin to see more than just the shell of his character. We find out that he’s Elias’s half-brother and from there, you can draw similarities between the two with their motivations. I’m not saying they are the exact same because they most definitely are not. I just think he has a similar wanting as Elias and that is to be a good and kind person, but where they diverge in that is where I think Avitas still wants to do right by the Empire, like Helene, and Elias wants nothing to do with the Empire. We start to understand this at the end of Torch where he reveals that he only took the mission to follow Helene because he wanted to know who Elias was. When you go back and reread Torch, you start to really see and understand those moments that we did get of him where it challenged what he were given of his character at the beginning. Throughout Reaper, we see more of who he is, and it’s far from what his character was at the beginning of Torch. It’s still not a lot, but I think his true intentions and character are really starting to settle in. He’s just always so kind and level-headed and smart. I just want more of his character because I know there’s more to his character. All the ground work is laid out for him, and I’m ready to get that content.

And just a brief go-over with other side characters and my thoughts: Zak, would have loved to have had some sort of redemption arc because he had some goodness within him that I thought could’ve been explored more and I wrote somewhere where he doesn’t act out like Marcus does and so I didn’t understand why people pinned Zak out to be the bad guy but after thinking more, the fact that Zak knows and often sees what the evils that Marcus does and doesn’t do anything to stop it (like that scene in Ember where Marcus is attacking Laia and Zak just walks away, pretending that it’s not happening) is in fact why he is pinned with the same disdain as Marcus. Afya, my queen, what a badass she is and I love her, she is probably one of the most sensible and smart characters to exist in this world, also love how flirtatious she is and how the confidence in her just radiates. Musa, what a king, absolutely love him and how sassy and sarcastic he is, definitely one of my favorites and his character dynamic is something that I enjoy reading about because he’s got this front of being charismatic and humorous but underneath all of that, he’s a sad boy, he literally spoke what was on my mind every time he was on the page and that was usually to say things like “are you done talking? because we need to leave like now.” and “we don’t have time for a heart-to-heart right now, we can do that another time” like honestly, yes, not to mention that I would also sell my soul just to get a Musa/Nikla story because I am intrigued by their relationship. Demetrius, my forever favorite and I’m so fucking sad that he died, the only side-side character in book one that I got super attached to. Darin, a lot of Laia’s story centers around getting him out of prison, honestly, lackluster compared to a lot of the other side characters, but I do like the strength that he instills in Laia and the care that he has for her, I don’t know, I just feel like his character should be more because he does play such an important role in the book. Cook, an actual big shocker for me that she was Laia’s mom, like the clues where there but I was too stupid to piece them together, thought she was such an interesting character and wished we got more from her, she had this weird ability to not be caught or traced whenever she snuck into place and is it tied to some magical ability that she has because she did have Laia’s armlet before it was Laia’s, the reveal of who she was was really well done with the flashbacks and just the way that Mirra was a different person from Cook was so interesting, I loved how Cook express her regret for who she was as a person and what she had done. There are a lot of other side characters but these are just the ones that I have deeper thoughts on. 

All of these characters are definitely flawed, some more than others, and that’s what I love. Not every character is a fucking rainbow or ray of sunlight. They make mistakes and from there, they grow. Under the circumstances that they are put under, they are tested to their limits to see and reach their full potential. There is a line that I love so much, that I feel captures the character’s journeys and what they are forced to go through because it is their fates. “Curse this world for what it does to the mothers, for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.” Reaper (448)

I wanna talk about the romantic relationships now.

Let’s talk about Elias and Laia first. I am really liking and appreciating their growth and relationship more now. I was never really attached to their pairing because I think I overlooked their whole progression. A lot of people say that it’s insta-love which it kind of is, but it falls a little bit farther behind from that trope. Sure, Elias thinks Laia is pretty from their first interaction, but I think he looks to Laia as someone he could save, and not in the “she’s a weak person and I’m a strong person so I have to protect her” but it plays more into his character and his want to change who he is. Elias helping and caring for Laia is one of the first steps into him grasping the courage to defying the person he doesn’t want to become. I mean, y’all ever watched a movie or TV show where a character is just shit on so much and you’re like “I want to be friends with that person so I can tell them how great they are”? I think that’s what Elias feels towards Laia along with his attraction to her beauty. It then slowly progresses when they have that night in his room. They talk to each other and reveal more about themselves. It gets rid of their ideation of each other. That kiss they had was built on lust. They found a connection between them and felt that spark. In book two, it begins to explore their relationship more. They spend quite a while alone travelling even though Elias is passing out half of the time, but they deal with hardships together, and from there, they get to know each other more. They are constantly supporting each other and building strength in the other person. While they are doing this, their attraction grows because they can lean and depend on each other without fear or guilt. They’ve found something in each other that draws them together, and together they are stronger. They are both characters who care a lot and sometimes too much, and that’s the best thing about them. Whenever they’re together, they feel safe and can freely express whatever they are feeling. Also, the fact that they both simultaneously dream about their future is wholesome as fuck. You can’t tell me that this couple doesn’t slap when it does.

Onto Helene and Avitas. They are also a couple that slaps hard. They have a more slow burn romance that is also the enemies to friends to lovers trope, and I love it. There’s a lot of discussion as to why people ship these two together and I think it’s completely valid. This is one of the more complicated ships because of how Helene and Avitas’s relationship starts. Throughout Torch, Helene constantly holds her guard up (as she should) against Avitas because of what she knows of him, and that is that he was her interrogator and that he works for the Commandant. As Torch progresses, she continues to be irritable of his existence but she slowly starts to become curious of his character and true intentions because of his actions don’t follow in suit of what an enemy or spy would do. There’s a shift in their relationship where Helene lets her guard down just the slightest bit when she talks about Elias to Avitas. The shift continues as the story progresses, but they never gloss over the fact that Avitas interrogated and beat Helene. It’s constantly brought up by both characters to emphasize that this relationship that’s forming, isn’t going to form so easily. It’s even brought up at the end of Reaper and at this point, the feelings that Helene and Avitas have for each other are clearly mutual romantic feelings. Slowly throughout Torch, Helene begins to put her trust into Avitas, and in Reaper, we get the sense that Helene now fully trusts him. She understands him more and from there, her feelings start to form because she feels that sense of comfort and security with him. I just really love that Helene is more of the hotheaded person and Avitas is more of the levelheaded person, and they balance each other out so so well. Also, the fact that Avitas never underestimates or undermines Helene, and is only there to support her and help her, and always lets her initiate intimacy or touching is the best fucking thing ever.

I read a great post about their relationship a year or so back and I constantly refer back to it whenever I write about their pairing:

https://elias-veturius-laia-of-serra.tumblr.com/post/175995984669/how-can-you-ship-helene-with-her-torturer-thats

Other side couples I want to quickly talk about (there’s only two): First is Helene and Elias. I shipped them during my second read if only for the fact that I’m a sucker for the friends to lovers trope. During my third reread, I didn’t really feel the romantic connection between the two. There is a sense of safety and security and comfort between the two because of how long they’ve known each other. But Elias never really has those romantic feelings as Helene does. It’s more of lust on his part. Onto Laia and Keenan/The Nightbringer. Now I was really surprised and confused that there are people who ship Laia with the Nightbringer. Like the dude literally destroyed her entire life and family with the intent of doing so because he gains something out of doing it. I don’t know, it doesn’t seem right to me. But with Laia and Keenan, I just can’t help but hate every fucking second that I have to read about their relationship in book one and two and the few scenes in book three now that I know who Keenan really is and what trashy things he’s done. I just hate it so much. He fucking manipulated her. 

Really quick on the magic system(?): I don’t have a lot of thoughts on it but just like, why is it only a select few who have magic? I also really love it and find that it weaves its way throughout the story really smoothly and it makes sense. 

One thing I want to touch upon because I just noticed it in my third reread but I love how Sabaa Tahir slips in the name changes subtly within the chapters to indicate the character’s feelings toward (mainly side) characters. For Laia, in the beginning of Ember, she always referred to Keenan as “The Rebel” or something of the variation, but as she grows closer to him, she refers to him as “Keenan.” In Torch, after she starts realizing how much power and confidence Keenan is taking away from her to subject her back into a more submissive role, she starts referring to him as “The Rebel” again. For Helene, she always referred to Avitas as first “The Northman” then “Harper” in the beginning of Torch. Later on. when her learning of his character grows and she begins to trust him more, she refers to him as “Avitas.” I’m sure there are more but I only caught those two this time around. Also, it’s probably irrelevant or not even that deep but hey, who knows?

Onto the plot of this series... I feel like this review is so fucking long already so I’m just gonna ramble about my favorite things/scenes in each book so as not to drag this on longer than it has to.

Starting with Ember! Honestly, this book is the one that makes me feel the most euphoric and sucks me in the most. The writing is just so fucking gorgeous and captivating. It also gets the job done, like there are so many books out there where the writing is really pretty but it has no purpose but to be pretty. The writing in Ember (and the other two) stays so beautiful yet still adds to the plot. This is such a great base book for what this series really becomes. If you really think about it, this book is sooo simple compared to the other two. It really makes you wonder how we got from the Commandant and Marcus being the biggest threats, trials to crown an emperor, and Laia wanting to save her brother to a magical jinn and a necromancer being the biggest threats, ghosts attacking people, and Laia now the leader of the Resistance, like we came a looong way. And I enjoyed every second of it. Anyway, back to Ember. My favorite scenes were the first introduction to Blackcliff (it just further encased me into the story and gave the readers a look into what cruelty Blackcliff is), the graduation scene (so much fucking euphoria and you can just imagine being there with Elias and Helene, hearing the crowd shouting and cheering and just feel the energy), the first nine pages of Elias during the Trial of Courage (makes me cry so much because this is where we really feel the regret and sorrow that Elias carries within him), the transition into the Trial of Cunning (THIS IS SUCH A STELLAR TRANSITION, like you could see the entire scene shift into the trial and it’s so fucking good), the Moon Festival (I mean, how can this not be anyone’s favorite scene when this is where we get the first wholesome and cute interactions between Laia and Elias, and excuse me, we would all love to know what Elias said to Laia in Sadhese), Helene healing Laia (this entire scene is so sad because Laia thinks she’s dying when she’s really not, and just her realization of what was happening, and also this is like an intimate moment between the two), Helene challenges Elias to a duel (the way this scene was written was so beautiful, and also the feeling of being so in sync with someone’s movements and thoughts is perfectly captured within this scene), the Trial of Strength (need I say why? It just brings me so much pain and makes me cry, and I miss you, Demetrius. You deserved better), Elias and Laia being stuck in Elias’s room overnight (the connection they have and this is where they have their first kiss), Cook’s story (the entire scene just gives me ‘almost empty diner while it’s raining outside’ vibes), and the Commandant’s visit to Elias (the first and really only interaction between the two that is filled with so much emotion and heartache for Elias).

Onto Torch! I always forget how sad and action packed this book is. I think it’s just that my burning rage and anger for Keenan overrides my memory that I forget the emotional journey our main three characters go through. But we get Helene’s POV! During my first read, I wasn’t sure if I would care for Helene’s chapters but now they are my absolute favorite. We also get that fucking line “You are my temple. You are my priest. You are my prayer. You are my release.” AND IT WILL FOREVER BE THE BEST LINE TO EVER EXIST. Really loved the sibling dynamic between Helene and her sisters, though it wasn’t a lot, I still loved it and it was relatable. Okay, but favorite scenes are: Elias and the Commandant’s fight (I’m just a sucker for really good written fighting scenes between two skilled fighters), Cain showing Helene the burned Illustrian house (this scene begins to make Helene question the Empire and what it stands for) the storyteller’s stage aka Mamie Rila starts a riot (the way Mamie Rila builds and builds with her story is magnificent, and you can feel the buzzing in the crowds and see the whole scene go down), Helene and Elias’s goodbyes (my heartaches so much for them because they are best friends and have been through so much together but they are tore apart and this is such an emotional scene because Helene doesn’t know that Elias is gonna die), when Laia tells Elias that she’s sorry for what happened to his family (the intimacy between them is so intense and you can feel the sorrow and guilt Laia feels along with Elias’s grief, god, it’s a good scene), Elias goes to say goodbye to Laia in the wagon (because of THAT line, it is perfection in all its glory), the black guard barracks scene with Helene and Avitas (Helene continues to question her love and honor for the Empire after witnessing the Commandant kill innocent Scholars, also we start to see Avitas for who he actually is and we start to feel the bond between Helene and Avitas form, and they also have a heart to heart talk about Elias), Helene at the Paters’ dinner (Helene is finally coming into her true form of being Blood Shrike and it’s amazing to see), the mention of Elias going to the cave (when you really think about it, it’s so goddamn sad), Laia and Avitas talk about Elias (the way everyone just loves Elias is so great), Helene helps Laia (their friendship is starting to form, ahhhhhhh).

Now for Reaper! I’m really surprised with how many people were dissatisfied with this one because it’s my favorite out of the three out right now. I think it’s because the characters are finally gaining confidence in who they are (not really Elias, he’s on another sad sad journey that ends with me crying). Also, probably because there’s really no annoying love triangle stuff in this, and I hate love triangles so much. I don’t know, it’s just that this book is so much grander and everything that happens is so climatic. Anyway, my favorite scenes are: the entire beginning scene in that abandoned house (the fact that we had to wait two years before this book came out and we got this amazing scene with all three main characters, after they were away from each other for so long was soooo worth the wait, also Elias and Helene with their first kind of conversation after not seeing each other so long, the way he was the only one who hadn’t called her Blood Shrike but then he calls her that, RUINED ME, Avitas letting Laia go, Laia and Helene’s very brief heart to heart about grieving, amazing beginning scene, really), every subtle flirtation between Avitas and Helene (because it’s sprinkled here and there and I LOVE IT and it’s so cute and natural and just amazing, especially that closet scene “you smell... not unpleasant” and when Helene gets dressed in front of Avitas and they have a little back forth, like god, just say that you guys like each other), Elias giving Laia the armlet (he’s so shy about it and it’s so goddamn wholesome and cute), Helene and Marcus visit the Augur’s cave/temple (Cain puts Helene in her place, basically tells her to check her privilege, like yes!), basically every scene with Musa (because he’s just the best, he’s hilarious, he’s my favorite type of character where they have a humorous upfront but they’re a sad person on the inside, also one of the most logical characters in this series), that steamy scene with Elias and Laia (I mean, obviously, but also, ended in a way that I was not expecting, also I’m waiting for the moment when Elias tells Laia what he told her the night in the wagon before he left her because when that moment comes, I will forever cry but also I don’t know if it’s gonna come in a super romantic scene or a super sad scene because it can go either way and I’m nervous about it), Elias finds out what happened to the jinn (this shows the true greatness that is this series because it blurs the lines of ‘who’s the real bad guy?’ and it’s makes this series all the more complex), Helene brings back the fleet (a great fucking scene, and it’s so atmospheric), Laia goes to meet the King of Adisa (Laia showing her great power and leadership, also we learn of Nikla and Musa and again, would love a story about them), Helene heals Avitas (it’s pretty clear in this scene that he really really likes Helene and it’s such a great confirmation scene), the entire ending battle scene (because Elias arrives and Helene thinks that he came back to save them but then he leaves and it breaks my heart, Livia gives birth, Marcus dies, the Nightbringer taking Helene’s mask, Helene thinking she was going to die alone and with so much regret, Laia and Cook coming to save Helene, Cook sacrificing herself, and everything about this last scene was such an emotional rollercoaster and I was sobbing my heart out), Helene and Avitas’s kiss (I LOVED IT because the emotions and feelings were laid out but then Helene had to shut herself out and I’m sad, I will also forever cry when Helene finally lets Avitas say her heart’s name because it’ll be so beautiful and again, it can go either way with this being a super romantic scene or a super sad scene), Helene and Laia’s last conversation (WE WILL FINALLY GET THE FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN THESE TWO THAT I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR).

Okay but my predictions for SKY: I think that Elias will use what he knows of the Wisp which is Keris’s mother to help Laia and Helene and the gang defeat Keris. Someone important is going to die and if it’s any of the main three or Avitas or Musa or Afya, I’m gonna cry so hard and for so long because no. Elias and Laia will have a happy ending because Elias found a way not to be Soul Catcher anymore and they can live the life they have been dreaming. As for Helene and Avitas, Helene is too stubborn to ever acknowledge her feelings for Avitas and what had happened, but it bothers her too much and too often so that she’ll confess her feelings and allow her to feel love, and Avitas will be there for her. I suck at making predictions but these are mine and please, I just want a happy ending for Laia, Elias, and Helene.

This has been long but if you made it this far, thank you!

[jessread-s]

qotd: “Life is made of so many moments that mean nothing. Then one day, a single moment comes along to define every second that comes after.” — Sabaa Tahir

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𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: An Ember in the Ashes: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ A Torch Against the Night: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ A Reaper at the Gates: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ A Sky Beyond the Storm: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

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It has been a couple of weeks since I finished “A Sky Beyond the Storm” and I cannot stop thinking about this series, which is why I have rated each novel five stars! I fell deeply in love with Tahir’s cast of characters and am incredibly thankful for the journey she took me on. I seriously cannot recommend “An Ember in the Ashes” enough. There truly is nothing else quite like it!

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Cross-posted to: Instagram

[dream-to-be-frog]

just finished reaper and it’s definitely the best book in the series by far. the first one was sooo ya and like. obviously it is but it made me remember why i don’t read ya as much, in the nicest way possible. it was good but wow some things made me oof. all my love to sabaa i’m reading this most because i love and respect her, but it was definitely a debut novel, y’know? second was better but still remnants of that. by reaper, she’s definitely more seasoned. it’s the first book i didn’t see all the plot twists coming and things genuinely caught me by surprise i was so thrilled with the plot. and the end?? chef’s kiss can’t wait for laia/helene bestfriendism. biggest critique is that at least one of the major characters should be gay. i think dex is actually but like is he gonna get anyone? who knows. also he’s not as important to me tbh. like faris and livvy obviously elias and laia (probably?? somehow??) helene and avitas (which i am actually a super huge fan of. not gonna lie. they’re so fun and i’m just obsessed with helene sorry blood shrike in general she’s arguably my favorite which i thought was surprising considering i was like omg finally a brown female lead. (lmao rip. i do love laia okay but of course she is who she is and who she is is slightly formulaic by nature of what kind of story this is. helene is just so complicated and fucked up. i love my fucked up girls.)) the whole thing with cook ??? with elias losing his humanity ?? oh homies we are really in it now because idk how besties will get out of this one, but i am having a blast. so obsessed with how elias changed to soul catcher in the middle in terms of chapter name. blood shrike caught me off guard at the start and this is even better. again the whole cook plotline?? yum finally some good fucking food. the twisty turnies the betrayals the fuckedupity. i’m just talking now and lost the plot of this post but i am genuinely soooooo excited for a sky beyond the storm

[thebooksareeverywhere]

this set😍